Arrows fitted with "foam" instead of "points" are becoming a catalyst for popularizing archery.
According to the Korea Archery Association on the 3rd, 109 elementary, middle, and high schools nationwide registered archery as a school sports club activity last year, surpassing 100 for the first time. The figure is expected to remain above 100 this year as well.
Archery is not yet an official school sports club event, but at the current pace, its prospects are bright. The basic requirement is maintaining registration with the National Education Information System (NEIS) at more than 100 schools nationwide for two years, after which final adoption follows deliberation by a committee of supervisors from metropolitan and provincial offices of education.
A school sports club refers to a sports club activity in which students from second grade of elementary school through third grade of high school voluntarily participate within school under the School Physical Education Promotion Act. It is separate from the training of athletes on sports teams. Students choose their preferred event and use time after school, during lunch, or during creative experiential activity periods.
While soccer, basketball, and badminton are actively run as official events, archery is expected to join their ranks soon.
The "safe foam arrow" has played a major role in expanding the base of archery. Archery is one of Korea's flagship medal-producing events, having won 50 medals including 32 golds at past Olympics, but the reality was that its international competition results did not translate into the popularization of the sport.
The mood has been changing since the development of the foam arrow in 2022. After identifying that the reason people in the field hesitated to try archery was parents' worries about the sharp points of arrows, the Archery Association developed a school sports club bow that replaced the point with foam, a foam rubber. The bow is also made of wood, making it light and easy to handle. The distance from the shooting line to the target is 7 meters.
Holes were made in the target. By hollowing out the 10-point and 9-point concentric circles and adopting a simple rule in which an arrow passing through the hole scores 1 point and one that does not scores 0, competition situations can be easily grasped. The net behind the target is a modified golf practice net.
The response has been enthusiastic. Hyundai Mobis has held school sports club archery tournaments for elementary and middle school divisions twice a year since 2022, and their popularity has grown each time. The tournament held this month at Namseoul University in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, drew about 300 students from 15 schools. Hyundai Mobis has taken the lead in promoting foam arrows by supplying equipment to middle schools nationwide, as well as through training for instructors and distribution of digital teaching materials.
"Retired athletes who were international competition medalists are also helping spread archery as a school sports club by serving as class instructors in the field," an Archery Association official said. "Above all, it is encouraging that students perceive archery as an event that is not difficult and find it enjoyable. We plan to flexibly optimize the rules and equipment by actively reflecting feedback from the field."
